Projects run by Community Grants recipients throughout 2011 - 2013, in Wiltshire:
| Community and Learning in Penhill | CLIP offers support to individuals and groups in Penhill. Their Community Grant project helps unemployed residents, people with disabilities and people facing some kind of mental health related issues to gain self-respect, confidence to move on and take up further courses organised in more formal statutory institutions. Courses they will be offering include: English Conversation, IT skills, and an Exercise to Music Course (fitness instructor qualification). |
| Doorway Wiltshire | Doorway Wiltshire is an organisation that assists and supports people who are homeless or under the threat of homelessness. The Community Grant funding has helped set up a Women's Empowerment Group called “The Tuesday Project” for women guests of Doorway who are aged 18 or over and are unemployed or employed for less than 16 hours per week. Their support worker attends the sessions and supports group members to identify and address negative issues affecting their lives which reduce their chances of moving into the workplace. The project aims to enable group members to take control and move on in their lives towards work and a fuller role in society and away from dependence on public benefits and services. |
| Friends of WCR | Friends of WCR will be using their Community Grant funding to train up to 30 people, who are furthest removed from the labour market, in Community Radio skills to enable them to volunteer or ultimately find paid employment as radio presenters, production assistants or fundraisers. Their project aims to enhance their own feeling of self worth, and encourage them to gain experience by socially interacting with the public on a daily basis. The training will be over six months and include studio protocols, social interaction, use of the telephone, presentation and communication skills followed by “on the task” training. |
| Learning for Life | Learning for Life offer training to individuals, many of whom are disadvantage in some way in the job market. Their Community Grant project will be providing courses that are non accredited and act as a pathway to employment particularly for disabled people and people suffering from chronic pain and associated depression. |
| Open Blue Trust | The Open Blue Trust run a play bus as a mobile village hall visiting 5 isolated rural communities a week running toddler clubs, after school clubs and residents cafes including travellers sites. Their Community Grant funding is enabling them to run four 5 week cooking courses on the Parklands estate in Malmesbury. The course is aimed at increasing skills and confidence and assisting mainly lone parents to move toward employment. |
| Reach Inclusive Arts | REACH offers arts projects for people with disabilities and mental health issues in Swindon. Their Community Grant will enable them to provide 20 arts sessions called 'Working Arts' as training opportunities for people with disabilities and mental issues who have either never worked or who are currently not working, to help them to overcome barriers to employment. “Working Arts” provides a series of multi-media arts workshops that enable disabled adults or people who have used mental health services to take part in supported group activities. participants experience a range of arts mediums including drama and visual art that will address poor self-esteem, raise their expectations and improve their confidence. The project is helping them to gain in confidence, self-esteem and assertiveness and enhance their life skills in order to feel ready to join in the job market. |
| Swindon Advocacy Movement | SAM provides an independent accessible advocacy service for young people and adults with learning disabilities living in Swindon. Their Community Grant project will providing training opportunities for volunteers with learning disabilities, some of whom have high dependency, which includes the opportunity to acquire the Community Volunteering Qualification (CVQ), provided by ASDAN. Run by a qualified trainer with experience of making courses accessible for people with learning disabilities, training up to 20 volunteers with learning disabilities using adapted inclusive learning materials. Also engaging co-trainers with learning disabilities who are also acting as mentors for the volunteers on the course. |
| Volunteer Centre Swindon | Providing a series of one day “Preparation for Volunteering” courses aimed at people who have never volunteered before. The Volunteer Centre will also be offering follow up appointments for future volunteering opportunities and support though the application process to volunteer and taster days to explore volunteering opportunities. |
| Wilton Eco Park Development Community Association | Their project will be providing employment skills and confidence building to local people who have found it very difficult to access employment because of mental health issues or lack of skills, with the aim of assisting them into volunteering or employment. Running 24 sessions with small groups of 6-12 people. |
| Wiltshire Centre for Independent Living | Wiltshire Centre for Independent Living is led by disabled people for disabled people and offers a range of advice and support services to disabled people in Wiltshire. With the Community Grant funding, the centre is working with disabled people with a variety of impairments, aged 20-65 who are economically inactive and their non-employed carers. The workshops are being delivered by disabled people who have themselves returned to work. These role models help the participants' self-esteem and give them new skills, knowledge and opportunities through the training designed to meet their needs. Also creating volunteering opportunities within WCIL, some of which can be done from home, e.g. data searches and entry and also work with GROW the voluntary sector infrastructure organisation to support them create volunteering roles for disabled people in the voluntary sector. |
| Wiltshire People First | Wiltshire People First's Community Grant project is providing training and support to up to 12 people with learning disabilities, helping them to gain confidence and skills and to move toward employment. The participants are being offered the opportunity to develop workplace skills, gain confidence and sample volunteering. |
| Wiltshire Scrapstore | Wiltshire Scrapstore will be using their Community Grant funding to employing one of their unemployed volunteers to work with 5 disabled people in their new craft shop in Lacock, giving them all the skills and confidence in retail by being supported in their volunteer roles. |